Research Question: What legislation has been passed to protect speciall needs students
Contributed by: Eric Fox
1. McQuat, R. C. (2007). An Investigation of Agency and Marginality in Special Education. International Journal of Special Education, 22(3), 7. Summary of Article: This article takes an in-depth look at how special education programs function and if they are actually protecting the interests of special needs students. The author argues that things like homogeneously tracking students leads to big divides between students and can perpetuate a system of inequality, and a gap in social capital between those who have been placed into different tracks. The main goal of the article though is to critique the function of education for special needs students. How the standardized testing system does not fit with the modified curriculum that is used for students who are socially and mentally disadvantaged. Finally, how the goals of special education have been mismanaged and poorly planned by bureaucrats and people who have failed to look at every part of the problems facing students who are somehow disabled Reaction to Article: I thought this article was very interesting, and I really enjoyed McQuat's takes on the issues he tackled. I think he raises valid point on the issues with social capital and how homogeneously tracking students can seriously stunt the development in students who have been victimized by this system. I thought his argument about standardized testing was important as well, and I was convinced when I was finished reading that the standardized testing system does not adequately educate students so that one day they can become productive system. This article gave me more perspective about the problems with special education because of how well this article articulated its message.
2. Gootman, E. (2007, February 21). City to Give 20 Small Special Education Schools Extra Funds - New York Times. New York Times. Retrieved December 7, 2008, from link Summary of Article: This article takes a look at some of the reforms made in the New York City School system, a system that, according to the article, has not been short on problems and inequality. Part of the Mayor's big plans for the reform of the NYC education system is to build more schools and create more opportunities for students that require special education, with the crown jewel of this plan to create small schools just for special needs students with 5 or 6 teachers and maybe 100 students. This plan will reverse trends of the past where students with disabilities could be shut out of educational opportunities in middle and high schools all over the city. Reaction to Article: I thought this article, while short was very informative and gave me an idea of what kind of problems pop up in school district regarding students with disabilities and disadvantages. I was shocked though at the sorts of problems that New York City is facing, it seems that the oppurtunities that are being denied to students would violate the stipulations of the Individuals with disabilities education act. I did not agree with the mayor's plan for new small schools either. While these new schools will put these children in a non-threatening, kinder, gentler place, I think that closing them off from other students will hurt their development more than being in a regular school with mean kids would. Also, when a student is misdiagnosed this system will seriously hurt the development of that child because they will be closed off from normal students that they needed to be educated with, and in a regular school that kind of error is easier to fix
3. Henderson, K. (2008). Optional IDEA Alternative Dispute Resolution. InForum. Retrieved December 7, 2008, from link Summary of Article: The article focuses on the dispute resolution between parents, teachers and members of school administration about the needs of their special needs students, with special light on dispute resolution that is not covered by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). They found methods of solving problems outside of IDEA that were either as effective or more effective than the ones provided by IDEA, they included things like early complaint resolution, parent to parent assistance, conflict resolution skills training, dispute resolution case managers, telephone intermediary, non-IDEA mediation, third party opinion or consultation processes, resolution meeting facilitation and stakeholder management/oversight council. This report states that 43 states filled out surveys as to how they have developed or plan to develop each of these non-IDEA dispute resolution processes and which Education associations that these states rely on for these processes. Reaction to article: I found this article to be extremely thorough, almost to a fault because it was so tedious to read. I did not realize there were so many government institutions that were involved with special education, there were dozens of organizations listed by Henderson in this article. I thought that this article was interesting in some ways because IDEA can cover only so much so it is definitely important to be able to find ways to resolve conflicts and issues outside of this very prominent legislation. I will admit that some of the article went over my head because of all the technical terms but what I keyed in on I found interesting and a very important contribution to the education community
4. Koch, K. (2000). Special Education. CQ Researcher. Retrieved December 7, 2008, from link Summary of Article: This article takes a magnifying glass to the Individuals with Disabilities Act and puts this piece of legislation under intense scrutiny. this article outlines what IDEA has done for students with special needs or disabilities, what problems still exist with the program. There is also special attention to funding, the article examines whether or not the program should be fully funded and if that is a realistic goal. This article looks at IDEA and its relationship to diagnosis and if the current system implemented encourages doctors, teachers, and parents to over diagnose their children with disabilities: are they trying to get more money for their student's education, or is the problem with the schools instead of the kids they are teaching. Finally this article looks at the escalating costs of IDEA with the aiding of states and how this would affect the reauthorization of IDEA in 2002. Reaction to Article: I thought this article was extremely interesting, well organized and very informative. I liked that they used more personal examples like Alex Wright and Cortney Wickard in the beginning to put a face on what the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act does for students that require special education needs. I thought the problems with IDEA posed by this article were daunting, and after reading the article I thought that they were going to be difficult tasks but that they were not unmanageable and that we were already headed in the right direction to begin to address and solve them. I was a little distressed by the funding issued that were presented by the article and kept thinking that maybe we could actually get some good stuff done through this legislation if we weren't so busy putting potheads into prison with murders and rapists. I really enjoyed reading this, I thought the discussion was lively in the pro-con section and both sides presented good points but I still felt like we needed to increase funding, we just needed to find new ways to do it
Research Question: What legislation has been passed to protect speciall needs students
Contributed by: Eric Fox1. McQuat, R. C. (2007). An Investigation of Agency and Marginality in Special Education. International Journal of Special Education, 22(3), 7.
Summary of Article: This article takes an in-depth look at how special education programs function and if they are actually protecting the interests of special needs students. The author argues that things like homogeneously tracking students leads to big divides between students and can perpetuate a system of inequality, and a gap in social capital between those who have been placed into different tracks. The main goal of the article though is to critique the function of education for special needs students. How the standardized testing system does not fit with the modified curriculum that is used for students who are socially and mentally disadvantaged. Finally, how the goals of special education have been mismanaged and poorly planned by bureaucrats and people who have failed to look at every part of the problems facing students who are somehow disabled
Reaction to Article: I thought this article was very interesting, and I really enjoyed McQuat's takes on the issues he tackled. I think he raises valid point on the issues with social capital and how homogeneously tracking students can seriously stunt the development in students who have been victimized by this system. I thought his argument about standardized testing was important as well, and I was convinced when I was finished reading that the standardized testing system does not adequately educate students so that one day they can become productive system. This article gave me more perspective about the problems with special education because of how well this article articulated its message.
2. Gootman, E. (2007, February 21). City to Give 20 Small Special Education Schools Extra Funds - New York Times. New York Times. Retrieved December 7, 2008, from link
Summary of Article: This article takes a look at some of the reforms made in the New York City School system, a system that, according to the article, has not been short on problems and inequality. Part of the Mayor's big plans for the reform of the NYC education system is to build more schools and create more opportunities for students that require special education, with the crown jewel of this plan to create small schools just for special needs students with 5 or 6 teachers and maybe 100 students. This plan will reverse trends of the past where students with disabilities could be shut out of educational opportunities in middle and high schools all over the city.
Reaction to Article: I thought this article, while short was very informative and gave me an idea of what kind of problems pop up in school district regarding students with disabilities and disadvantages. I was shocked though at the sorts of problems that New York City is facing, it seems that the oppurtunities that are being denied to students would violate the stipulations of the Individuals with disabilities education act. I did not agree with the mayor's plan for new small schools either. While these new schools will put these children in a non-threatening, kinder, gentler place, I think that closing them off from other students will hurt their development more than being in a regular school with mean kids would. Also, when a student is misdiagnosed this system will seriously hurt the development of that child because they will be closed off from normal students that they needed to be educated with, and in a regular school that kind of error is easier to fix
3. Henderson, K. (2008). Optional IDEA Alternative Dispute Resolution. InForum. Retrieved December 7, 2008, from link
Summary of Article: The article focuses on the dispute resolution between parents, teachers and members of school administration about the needs of their special needs students, with special light on dispute resolution that is not covered by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). They found methods of solving problems outside of IDEA that were either as effective or more effective than the ones provided by IDEA, they included things like early complaint resolution, parent to parent assistance, conflict resolution skills training, dispute resolution case managers, telephone intermediary, non-IDEA mediation, third party opinion or consultation processes, resolution meeting facilitation and stakeholder management/oversight council. This report states that 43 states filled out surveys as to how they have developed or plan to develop each of these non-IDEA dispute resolution processes and which Education associations that these states rely on for these processes.
Reaction to article: I found this article to be extremely thorough, almost to a fault because it was so tedious to read. I did not realize there were so many government institutions that were involved with special education, there were dozens of organizations listed by Henderson in this article. I thought that this article was interesting in some ways because IDEA can cover only so much so it is definitely important to be able to find ways to resolve conflicts and issues outside of this very prominent legislation. I will admit that some of the article went over my head because of all the technical terms but what I keyed in on I found interesting and a very important contribution to the education community
4. Koch, K. (2000). Special Education. CQ Researcher. Retrieved December 7, 2008, from link
Summary of Article: This article takes a magnifying glass to the Individuals with Disabilities Act and puts this piece of legislation under intense scrutiny. this article outlines what IDEA has done for students with special needs or disabilities, what problems still exist with the program. There is also special attention to funding, the article examines whether or not the program should be fully funded and if that is a realistic goal. This article looks at IDEA and its relationship to diagnosis and if the current system implemented encourages doctors, teachers, and parents to over diagnose their children with disabilities: are they trying to get more money for their student's education, or is the problem with the schools instead of the kids they are teaching. Finally this article looks at the escalating costs of IDEA with the aiding of states and how this would affect the reauthorization of IDEA in 2002.
Reaction to Article: I thought this article was extremely interesting, well organized and very informative. I liked that they used more personal examples like Alex Wright and Cortney Wickard in the beginning to put a face on what the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act does for students that require special education needs. I thought the problems with IDEA posed by this article were daunting, and after reading the article I thought that they were going to be difficult tasks but that they were not unmanageable and that we were already headed in the right direction to begin to address and solve them. I was a little distressed by the funding issued that were presented by the article and kept thinking that maybe we could actually get some good stuff done through this legislation if we weren't so busy putting potheads into prison with murders and rapists. I really enjoyed reading this, I thought the discussion was lively in the pro-con section and both sides presented good points but I still felt like we needed to increase funding, we just needed to find new ways to do it
EDC 102 F08 Fnl Prj Eval - Eric F